


The Smell of Lemons and Lavender

by Amphibimixis



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen, Other, This was a project for school!, does classmates who have to scan through this count as beta read? i dont think so, i spent like 3 days writing this because i was in a Moodtm, not beta read.. i think, nothing lol, uhh i dont know what else to say, uhhhhh, yeah no im not adding anything anymore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:48:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24860341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amphibimixis/pseuds/Amphibimixis
Summary: When Eros turns 20, he’s devised an experiment to see if he can fall in love. The catch is – his blind date is literally that. Without the ability to see Eros during the duration of the experiment, will they be able to fall in love? By a month after Eros's twentieth birthday, both he and Finney finally discover what home smells and looks like.
Relationships: Original Character(s)/Original Character(s)





	The Smell of Lemons and Lavender

**Author's Note:**

> _"You don't want to look at me, it would destroy us." (Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes)_

Life was ironic he decided. Despite being named Eros, he couldn't find love no matter what he did. He spent so much time writing letters, going on tinder, hooking his first sends up in the hopes that the pretty ladies had siblings. Hell, at this point he'd consider swinging the other way just to get better chances at finding the perfect someone.

And now, just a few minutes shy of being 20, his parents have planned an arrangement. If he didn't have his own suitor by the time he's 20, they'll find him a fiancée. Eros agreed. On one condition. They must date for a month, without the fiancée seeing Eros. Even Eros thought this was crazy, but he wanted to go off with a bang.

This would probably be his last chance at love before he finally cracks. He's decided on it. If this doesn't end well, then He might as well deal with the heartbreak after.

He puts his phone down on the space right before the edge of the bed and not quite reaching the bedside table. A month is quite a long time. It’s March 7 in a few minutes and it leaves 31 days of the thought of a warm person beside him in bed, and actually there in the mornings. Eros goes to sleep dreaming of breakfast foods.

The smell of pancakes and bacon and the sound of the oil sizzling away in the pan are the things he wakes up to in the morning. He does not quite register the shock value of _someone_ in his house quite yet and drags his poor blanket with him towards his small apartment kitchen. He rubs out his eyes, mumbling a soft “Mornin’” before realizing. “There is someone _here_ ,” he gasps and covers himself in the blanket.

“Oh, uhm, Eros? I hope it’s you?” The soft voice does not totally register to Eros as the person who is standing in his house. Cooking eggs and bacon. “Yes- What are you doing in my house?” Eros manages to choke out, eyeing the stranger. They don’t look too bad, standing in a sweater and jeans, sunflowers painted on the denim. Their hair is up in a tiny ponytail, supported by the small number of hairpins. Eros gives a low whistle as the stranger turns to him, pan still in hand. Their eyes are closed.

‘Oh. Oooooh,’ echoes in Eros’s head. He continues to admire the person. They have two hair clips clipping their bangs to the side, and his cheeks are flushed. Restraining himself from making any comment, his thoughts are interrupted by more talking. “I’m sorry for the rude trespassing, but your parents said I was going to be dating you? For a month? With these weird conditions?” As if explaining, they lift their free hand and move it across their face. Not seeing. “I’m Finney Sandoval, just call me Finn. Yes, it’s spelled F-I-N-N-E-Y. Don’t know why my mom chose it.” They shrug and move over to where Eros keeps his silverware and plates.

“No, no, no.” Eros pats Finn on the shoulder and leads him towards the sofa. “I don’t have a dining table, sorry, but I’ll go get the plates you stay comfy. We can talk over breakfast?” He offers, taking the pan away slowly from Finney and allows the other to sit down on the softer side. Finney nods, not exactly facing Eros directly, but Eros smiles nonetheless. This might just work. 

He hurriedly grabs the forks and plates and dumps what he thinks is a good amount of scrambled eggs and bacon into both of the plates. He thinks something’s amiss until he hears the ding of his toaster and Finney from the sofa goes, “Yeah, there’s toast if you want.” Eros rolls his eyes. “Do you want anything to drink? I think I’ve got milk?” He calls back from the kitchen.

“Sure.” Was the answer he got. He pours out a glass of milk and carries all the food back into the living room where Finney is slowly twirling a piece of hair around their finger. 

He hands Finney their plate and glass and Eros sits at the other end of the sofa. “So, what do you want to talk about? Small talk?” Eros laughs awkwardly at the end.

Finney shrugs around the forkful of eggs in their mouth and nods. “I don’t see what else.”

Eros snorts and covers it with a cough. Finney also stifles a laugh behind their hand and refrains from saying anything else. That broke the ice well. 

“So, I guess my parents told you about me?”

“Just your name and address, actually. But, they did bribe me with a bit of money and a lot of insurance that if you were a murderer and I got killed, you could totally get caught instantly.” Finney says this so casually like it’s a normal thing to do.

“Came here willingly, then?”

“Close friends encouraged me, saying you were ‘hot’ and my parents wanted me _not_ to be a shut-in.”

“Expecting anything from this experiment?” Eros can’t help but sound eager, although he tried not to let it slip. He could see that Finney noticed judging by the small smile they wore. He mentally cursed, but was pleased and surprised by Finney’s answer.

“Not that much, but maybe by the end of this I can snag a friend? A boyfriend mayhaps?”

“Are you sure you don’t mean snog?”

And to that, both of them laughed over their breakfast.

They continued the back and forth questions, sometimes with Finney asking and Eros answering to the best of his abilities. Finney was planning to be a botanist and had a part-time job at the flower shop downtown. Eros was a local matchmaker and decided to take up architecture. He also worked part-time at a coffee shop but had to quit a few weeks back to make room for his studies. 

Finney plays the violin. Eros used to be in the archery varsity.

They spend the morning talking about themselves, hoping to find a common ground between both of them. Their breakfasts long gone and they ended up migrating to the carpeted floor.

“You do know I can see, right?” Finney asks, tilting their head to the side trying to pinpoint where Eros is. Not quite.

Eros sputters, “Huh? What? But, you’re closing your eyes!” Finney responds by knitting their brows and actually facing where Eros is sitting.

“No, dummy. I can open my eyes when you’re not around. So, no unexpected visits and whatever. Your parents threatened me that if I ever saw you within the month, it’ll be the last.” Their voice droops towards the end as if they don’t want it to happen. “So please, no unexpected visits or photos. You can still text though.”

Eros nods as if Finney can see it. When Finney looks increasingly more concerned by the second, Eros finally speaks with affirmation. “I have to get used to no visual aids.”

Eros scratches the back of his neck with a nervous laugh. Finney blows a raspberry, laughing softly. “Yeah, you really do.”

Finney palms around the carpet, wary of the plates. Eros puts them on the sofa, and they make a clink. “Thanks. Was looking for you.”

“You could just ask, you know.” Eros laughs and scoots closer. He lays both of his hands on Finney’s and he is not prepared for how soft they are. There are small wounds sometimes, like on the back and on the palm. But, their fingers are gentle, delicate, yet strong, used to the hard strings of a violin. Eros brushes his thumb over a callous on the spot where Finney’s thumb connects to their palm. Finney laughs.

Eros looks up and Finney is seated close, facing him, eyes still closed. Their face is pink, and Eros could feel his own starting to heat up and _burn_. “I- I’m sorry, it was ticklish.”

Eros releases his hold on Finney’s hand and notes that holy heck, it is still their first meeting. Then, he feels a vibrate and a chime from the carpet.

“Must be my phone, can you check?” Finney palms around their pocket to fish out his phone.

Eros receives the phone from Finney, and it turns out to be an alarm labeled ‘ _get to work lazybones!_ ’ and he snorts. “I think you have to go to work.” He doesn’t try to hide his slight disappointment. Finney just smiles. 

“I’ll be back. I’ll be sleeping here, brought my own clothes and everything.” They gesture around. “Well, it would help if you hide for a bit. Do you keep any photos of yourself?” Finney stands up, balancing themself with outstretched hands.

“Nope, that’d be weird.” Eros shakes his head, helping Finney balance themself.

“Okay, go hide in a closet then, I’ll count to ten. I’ll also let you know when I’m gone.”

When Eros finally exits his stuffed closet, Finney is already gone. The lingering smell of bacon and eggs wafting through the living room.

\-----

_Week 1_

Eros had to get used to not being alone in the apartment all the time. It started off with him offering his bed to Finney (seeing as it was the only bed in the small apartment), but Finney would adamantly refuse to take the bed. They could just stay on the sofa instead. It was not until the fourth day where Eros had enough of making his guest sleep on the weird, old couch he had and finally offered Finney to sleep on the same bed. It was big enough for the two of them anyways. If they cuddled.

Finney thankfully brought their own toiletries. But, this came with the fact that up this close in bed, Eros could smell their unique shampoo. It smelled like a mixture of oranges and lemons, a hint of lavender, and it was _good._ They wore their hair down when they slept, and he couldn’t be more thankful, despite never saying it out loud.

Eros also found out that when Finney slept, they slept like a log and looked so at peace. He could compare them to a kitten. It was too cute for poor Eros’s heart.

\----

_Week 2_

A week after their initial meeting, Eros went into the apartment. Knocking, as it has been the set rule in case Finney was inside, counting three seconds, then entering. He did not expect to be hit with a wave of scents. First was the coffee and next were the oranges. 

He wandered into the living room to find a vase full of fresh flowers on the coffee table. There were roses, red carnations, and ferns as filler. A note on the bottom of the vase reads “Happy one week! -F” and Eros cannot contain the smile on his face. He is giddy with the sparks of affection and continues wandering around the apartment to find Finney.

He walks by the bedroom. Finney’s travel bag littered on the floor. He tiptoes over to look through the closet, which recently a drawer has been cleaned out and dedicated to Finney. He sighs, remembering it’s just been a week.

He goes by the kitchen, where there is coffee brewing in the coffee maker. The smell is strong, and not something Eros would drink for himself. But, there is a mug beside it, coffee a lighter brown with creamer and sugar mixed into it. He smiles this time, knowing there are still a few weeks to come.

He goes by the bathroom where he hears faint singing. He knows it is Finney and is suddenly struck by how _intimate_ this is. Finney is singing ABBA’s “Mamma Mia” and it is good. Their voice is obviously not that of a singer’s but they sound like they’re enjoying the wash. Most of the water drowns out their singing and humming, but they continues on. Sometimes they laugh just a little bit when they sing, and Eros’s heart _soars_. 

It is then and only then, Eros finds out he has already fallen, like Icarus and his wings.

But does he fly closer to the sun?

He leaves his post by the bathroom, giving Finney just a few minutes more of their singing before he decides to knock. Finney might not have initially heard him. The singing abruptly stops along with the water. Where Finney shouts out, “Heard you! Will be out in a tick!”

Eros walks back to the living room, not bothering to change just yet. He’ll have a lot to think about in the shower. 

He sits close to the flowers, idly twirling one of the mislaid leaves. This experiment is one big mess. While he did indeed plan out for both of them to fall in love by the end, he didn’t expect it to happen this fast. He doesn’t even know if Finney harbors the same feeling for him and it _hurts._ He didn’t want it to hurt.

He has fallen too hard and too fast and ‘oh my god he doesn’t even know what I _look_ like.’ He starts worrying. Not only did he not get anything for Finney (where they obviously got him flowers), he doesn’t even know if Finney would like how he looks. He doesn’t know if Finney would like him after this experiment. He suddenly doesn't want his heart to be broken, not if it's by Finney. The thought is painful.

Finney comes out of the shower, dressed in a big red sweater with white hearts on the hem. Eros feels his heart catch in his throat as he watches Finney take a seat on the couch. They navigate the space quite well, even with their eyes closed - a living habit they’ve grown used to. 

“I made us some coffee and brought home flowers if you don’t mind. I asked your parents if you were allergic and everything.” They chuckle into the big sleeves. “I’m sorry I used your sweater, I thought it was mine.”

“N-no, It’s fine.” Eros tries to not let his voice crack, he really does. “You look nice in it.”

“Oh! You can take a shower now, by the way.”

“Mhm-” Eros mumbles as he scurries away, standing from the couch and dashing into the bathroom where it still smells like oranges and lemons.

\----

_Week 3_

By their third week, Eros loves coming back to the smell of flowers in his house. It reminds him the Finney is still _there_ and Finney still likes staying with Eros to keep up with this experiment. He also remembers to bring home something for Finney for their third week anniversary.

It turns out to be a lemon cheesecake, topped with chocolate, and a handwritten note

Eros’s former co-workers were kind enough to give him a discount, partly for getting them and their partners together and partly because they want to pay him back. He thanked them feverishly before rushing back to his apartment.

He knocks thrice before entering the apartment. The smell of flowers is something he’s grown used to, he thinks. He would have never even thought of placing flowers in his apartment if they’ve never been placed here in the first place. Now when Eros smells it, it just reminds him of home.

“Finns?” He calls out, unsure if Finney is actually home. He received no texts or calls, so the uncertainty is strong. When no answer comes, he paces back and forth in the living room, not sure whether to call. After 5 minutes pass, he decides to phone them.

He pulls out the phone from his pocket. Three unread messages. All from Finney.

“Some of my friends took me out.”

“We’re going to a bar near my work.”

“I’ll be home late.”

It takes everything in Eros to calm down. The apartment is deafening as he sniffles and shuffles the cake into the fridge. Right. Finney has a life outside this bubble Eros had placed them in.

Eros goes to sleep early that night.

\----

_March 26, 20xx_

Eros forgot about the cake and the note he placed into the plastic. That turns out to be a mistake as Finney is sitting next to him on the couch and talking to him.

“The cake was good,” their voice is softer than usual. “I read the note you placed next to it.”

Their hands are on their lap. Eros had just come home from classes and did not expect the recent loss of flowers within the past few days. He chalked it up to them unfortunately wilting and maybe one day they would get replaced. But, the loss of the scent is imposing on him as he suddenly only smells the sourness of lemon. Finney’s voice makes him cringe.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here, I thought you wanted to be alone. I don’t know,” Finney is fidgeting in place. Obviously uncomfortable and on edge. It would almost seem like he would bolt if given the chance.

“Do,” the steadiness of his own voice shocks Eros, and Finney’s head snaps at attention towards the area where Eros is. “Do you want to leave?”

Eros feels small as if he’s letting a baby bird fly away from his own palms. As his mother used to say, keeping it trapped makes it want to escape faster. 

Finney looks like they got hit in the face. The shock hits them first, eyebrows scrunched together, then like they registered the words in their head, looks lost. Looks like they had to choose between two options they didn’t understand.

Eros is almost beginning to sob himself. He can’t believe he’s doing this but if he must. “If you don’t like it here. If you don’t like being with me, you can, you know.” The tears begin to slowly trail down his face. This was his last chance, he knew. But what would be the point of this experiment in the first place if his results are unfavorable. His voice cracks.

“I’m giving you the option here, Finns. You haven’t been talking much to me for the last 4 days, we avoid each other in the house as if you don’t know I’m here. Please, if you want to, I don’t want you to see me cry when I have to say goodbye. So, at least do it now.” 

His sobs are almost incomprehensible as he breaks down in front of a person who doesn’t know what he looks like. A pro, Eros laughs, they wouldn’t know what your crying face looks like.

“Do you want me to?” Finney’s voice is gentle, understanding what they’ve been given. They scoot over to Eros’s side, patting around.

Eros takes their hands, idly holding them, and Finney somehow knows where to go from there, cupping Eros’s cheeks. They swipe a thumb at Eros’s tears. Eros responds by shaking his head. 

“No, I don’t want you to leave,” he hiccups, “I don’t want you to stay because of me, though.”

Finney chuckles, pulling Eros into a tight hug. “Then, I won’t leave. I’m here because of you and for myself as well. So, don’t put my choices onto your shoulders.” Eros continues sobbing into Finney’s shoulder instead.

They spend the night together on the couch. Eros remembers the smell of lavender.

\----

_March 27, 20xx_

“Are we going to talk about what happened last night?” Finney asks, an earbud out as they listen to an audiobook on the bed and Eros is on the carpeted floor, chewing a pencil over his laptop and sketchbook. Eros looks up at Finney, who is resting their head on their hand and vaguely looking at where Eros is currently sitting.

He places the pencil down on the sketchbook and places both his laptop and sketchbook on the floor. “Sure, what about last night?” 

“I thought you needed space,” Finney nonchalantly places the other earbud down. They sit up criss cross applesauce, hands in the crook of their legs. “That’s why I left you alone. I’m sorry.”

Eros hums, “That’s why you weren’t speaking much?” 

Finney nods. “After you ran out to the bathroom two weeks ago, I thought I made you uncomfortable.”

“No, no, no! It wasn’t that!” 

An eyebrow is raised at him, “Then what was it? Was it because I used your sweater? I already washed it twice.” 

“It’s.. not that either.”

“So, it’s something you won’t tell me now? That’s fine. I guess.” Finney shrugs as they go back to their audiobook. “I would like to know why someday, though.”

They go back to what they were doing before. The awkward air does not dissipate and they can both feel its pressure.

\----

_March 28, 20xx_

Eros comes back to the smell of cookies baking. He bought himself a frappuccino (extra whipped cream) and a rainbow crepe cake for their fourth week together. While not exactly on the best terms, it’s not unlike Eros to forgive Finney right away anyways. He just needs to be more open, and he’s going to try.

He has already knocked, and he sees Finney in the kitchen, pacing in the small area. 

“You okay there, Finns?” Eros chirps, placing the frappe on the counter and the cake next to it. 

“I have cookies in the oven, but I can’t get them out. I can’t see, I can’t judge how baked they are.” The distressed reply comes.

“I’ll help!” Eros offers, patting Finney on the shoulder and bringing them and the cake back to the living room. “I bought cake, so enjoy yourself. I’m gonna take those out of the oven, smells amazing by the way.” 

There’s a new vase of flowers on the coffee table, roses and lavenders. The smell is overlooked by the baking smell of baked goods when Eros first entered. He never realized how much he missed the flowers.

He gets a mitten and pulls out the cookies. Some are chocolate chip, and some are sugar cookies. He lays them out to cool down on the countertop, blowing on them a little bit. He hears some music filter into the kitchen, ABBA’s “Dancing Queen”.

He enters the room in silence, but somehow Finney hears him. “You don’t mind?” Their mouth has a few crumbs and the opened cake lays in front of them. There’s still a bit of cake left. “I mean, you made cookies. I don’t see why you can’t have cake. Where did you even get ingredients anyways? I have like 9 packs of instant noodles.” Eros states in disbelief, standing by the side of the couch.

“Bought them. Not that hard.” Finney shrugs, fork still in hand. They wipe their mouth with a tissue and stand up. They brush their hands on their lap and they ask softly, “Dance with me?”

“Oh no, no this is not happening, I can’t dance. Stop.” There is no real threat in Eros’s voice as Finney approaches him, cornering him between the couch. Eros is smiling, a faint blush on his cheeks.

“I can’t either, but, it’s just us?” Finney offers.

Eros snickers, “Okay, Romeo.” He holds Finney’s hands and twirls them around during the chorus. Dancing Queen playing in the background. There is no real rhythm to their movements, and they are laughing and making random hand movements where they seem fit. What baffles Eros is how Finney can continue keeping his balance and looking like _that_ while supposedly blind. Both of them are flushed from laughter and slight exhaustion when the music fades into something else.

A cover of “The Winner Takes It All” starts playing and both Eros and Finney come slowly to a slow dance. Eros’s hand rests on Finney’s shoulder, his other holding Finney’s waist. Finney is confused as to where to put their hands so they end up mirroring Eros’s movements. They sway to the left and right slowly, and somehow they end up closer to each other. Finney is slightly shorter than Eros by a couple of centimeters. To Eros, it’s something he should’ve known, but seeing it up close is different.

The piano is nice ambiance as Finney finally leans their head rather hesitantly on Eros’s shoulder. “If I’m reading the atmosphere wrong. Please tell me,” Their voice is close to a whisper and a plea. 

“It’s okay,” Eros whispers back against the comfort of oranges and lavender. This time he knows it’s for real. The hopes that he had built and crushed had a reason to be pieced together again. 

They share a chaste kiss as the music fades out to nothing.

That night, Eros gave his heart to Finney bruised and broken. And Finney gave it back, wrapped in a bandage and a promise to help him heal.

\----

_April 2, 20xx_

“When will I get to see you?” Finney’s voice is from the ground this time, sprawled out, a plate of freshly cut apples and peanut butter next to them. Sometimes they accidentally puts his hand on the peanut butter and Eros would laugh. 

“In 5 days, it’s close. Can you believe it’s a month?” Eros is laying upside down on the bed, his head hanging off the edge. “What if I’m ugly, will you stop liking me then?”

Finney laughs this time. “I’m pretty sure my friends have standards. If you were ugly I’m sure they wouldn’t be calling you hot or handsome.” 

“Your friends just have low standards.”

“I’ll see for myself. Douche.”

\----

_Week 5_

Both of them decided not to do anything special that day, saving it for the actual occasion 3 days away. That didn’t stop Eros from peppering kisses on Finney when he said goodbye for classes or from buying them a slice of strawberry shortcake on his way back.

“You know I won’t stop liking you even if you were ugly. That’s kind of the point of the experiment,” Finney says when they get back from work.

“Oh,” Eros doesn’t have any other comment.

\----

_April 7, 20xx_

They stayed up until midnight, talking about their high school stories and generally about life on the carpeted floor of their bedroom. As each hour drew closer to 12, Eros could feel the same insecurities he had about himself and what he looked like creep closer to his core. He wondered if Finney felt the same, they seemed way too calm for this.

“Are you alright?” Eros asked, to make sure. 

“Yeah, just excited.” Finney’s reply was short and with good reason. They were a minute away from 12. 

It felt just like New Year’s to Eros as he watched Finney’s reaction as the seconds ticked down.

_3_

_2_

_1_

Finney finally opened their eyes, and Eros is _astounded_ by just how blue they are. It’s almost as if he could describe the entirety of the world’s oceans and say he’s traveled them all, just by looking at Finney’s eyes. His own eyes well up with tears as Finney reaches out a shaky hand to cup his cheek.

In this silence, they whisper, “I.. I didn’t know you had freckles.”

Eros laughs, tears streaking down his cheeks. He cannot keep away the smile he has on his face and even without looking, he knows that Finney is smiling too. 

Even if he can’t see where they may end up in the future, Eros is certain that right now, he is _home_.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi hi, I've decided to upload my weird computer homework here for easy access. There's nothing to do this! I just wanna share it to people on my twitter :> But, if you're here, thanks for reading this mess of a work!


End file.
